Improved telegraphic instrument



KENDRICKKL ABKERSON.

Telegraphic Transmitter.

Patented Nov. 16, 1858.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

B. KENDRIOK AND A. W. ARKERSON,-OF GAMBRIDGEPORT, MASS.

' IMPROVED TELEGRAPHIC INSTRUMENT.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 22,082, dated November 16, 1858.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, RUFUs KENDRICK and ALPHEUS W. ARKERSON, of Gambridgeport, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and Im proved Manipulator for Telegraph-Instruments; and we do hereby declare that the following is a full and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making part of this specification- Figure 1 being a plan of sufficient of the instrument to indicate the entire construction thereof; Fig. 2, an end elevation thereof; Fig. 3, a longitudinal vertical section of the same in the plane indicated by the line or 00, Figs. 1, 2, and 4; Fig. 4, a transverse vertical section thereof in the plane indicated by the line 3 y, Figs. 1 and 3.

Like letters designate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Our improved manipulator is applicable to all systems of telegraphing in which proportionate time is the essential element in producing the various characters or letters, whether by mechanical or chemical means, in connection with the electricity. Itis more especially intended to be applied to Morses electro-magnetic telegraph.

An important feature of the invention is that it is applicable to the finger-key of the Morse instrument without any change in the arrangement of said instrument except, perhaps, a slight change in the method of closing and breaking the circuit of the finger-key.

1n the drawings, F represents the ordinary finger-key of a Morse instrument, which may retain its location on the table where the instrument is placed, and our improved manipulator may be simply placed in a suitable position by the side of the finger-key. The circuitclosers e e, in order to insure certainty of contact, may (one or both) be elastic, or the lower one may have a little cup or hollow in its top to contain a drop of mercury, into which the point of the upper one may dip. The proper relative or proportionate motions for prod ucing the characters are communicated to this finger-key in imitation'of, or in manner similar to, the fingering of the human hand. To eflect this a suitable vibratory movement is given to a rocking shaft or bar, B, from the axis b of which a projection, E, extends to the button f of the finger-key and rests thereon.

This projecting piece fulfils the ordinary office of the human linger in manipulating, and may, therefore, be termed finger.

The vibratory movement communicated to the rocking shaft B is required to be such that its finger E shall hold the circuit closed or open, in succession, the proper relative or propor tional time for each character to be produced" We efi'ect this by means of a set of keys, D D D, 850., corresponding with the several letters of the alphabet or other characters employed, said keys being arranged on a suitable keyboard, and so as to have either a vibratory or a reciprocating motion communicated to them. The latter mode is represented in the drawings, the several keys having heads 61 d d, &c., by which to draw them out as far as required.

The return movement of the keys is conveniently effected by means of a spring or springs.

The arrangement shown in the drawings will be found to be simple and effective. It consists of a roller, 0, to which straps or bands 0 c c, &c., extend from the rear ends, respectively, of the keys. A single coiled spring, g, acting so as to turn the roller in the right direction, will then serve to draw back any one of the keys connected with said roller.

A set of dogs, a a n, &c., is pivoted to projections m m m, &c., or otherwise on the rocking shaft B in such a manner that by drawing or pressing against their rear edges they will each be rigidly connected with and turn said rocking shaft; but by pushing or pressing against their front edges they will turn on their pivots, and consequently not act on the rocking shaft, all substantially as shown in Figs. 3 and 4. These dogs are respectively located over the several keys D D D, 850., their lower points reaching down some distance into notches or spaces t t s s in the upper edges of said keys. The rear edges of the dogs are abrupt or vertical, but the front edges are rounded off or beveled, as shown in Fig. 4, so that when the keys are drawn out certain proj ections,p r 9, Fig. 4, between the notches t t s s, will strike the dogs and move them along sufficiently to turn the rocking shaft B the proper distance to close the circuit at the finger-key; but when the keys are again retracted these projections will pass under the dogs, which turn on their pivots to allow the same, without moving the rocking shaft.

A counter spring, h, or its equivalent is at tached to the rocking shaft to bring it back to its position after being turned by one of the dogs at n n, &c., and said dogs strike an elastic cord, Z, or its equivalent pressing against pins it i, 850., between said dogs, when the rocking shaft is broughtinto position, and thus are again righted. As the projections 1? r1) pass from beneath the dogs n n n, &c., in drawing out any of the keys, therefore, the rocking sh aft springs back to place, the dogs descending into the notches t t s s, so that the circuit at the finger-key is broken at such times. In one of the notches, t t, of each key the dog remains suspended when the instrument is not in action, as shown in Fig. 4, thus keeping the circuit broken by the finger-key itself; and in the other rear notch, t, the dog falls at the completion of each letter or character in drawing out each key. The intermediate notches, s 8, if any, are for breaking the circuit to form the blank spaces between the lines and dots.

The projections 19 r 19 make the dots and lines, by the combination of which, in connection with intermediate spaces, all the characters used in the Morse system are formed. A simple narrow or pointed projection, as at pp, Fig. 4, since it keeps the circuit closed but a moment, forms a dot, while a long projection, as at r, Fig. 4, since it holds the circuit closed for some length of time, makes a line, and this projection makes a long line, (as for the L character,) or a short line, (as for the T eharacter,) according to its length. The same is true of the intermediate spaces 8 s when required. For instance, in Fig. 4, first a pointed projection,

then a long projection, then another pointed projection, as shown, would produce a dot, a line, and a dot in succession, thus: the character for F in the Morse alphabet. Hence, as relative time is the requisite element in producing these characters, and as the keys are ordinarily moved with nearly uniform motion, it matters not whether they are moved swiftly or slowly. In either case the characters will be properly formed. Thus a considerably greater speed in telegraphin g can be attained with this manipulator than with the fingers unassisted. It also possesses this advantage, that it can be used with scarcely any previously-acquired dexterity.

What we claim as our invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent. is-

l. The application to the finger-key ofa telegraph-instrument of a rocking shaft or 1 ts equivalent, to which a succession of vibratory motions of the proper proportionate durations for producing the characters required is communicated, as specified.

2. The construction and arrangement of the rocking shaft B with its dogs 41 i t, &c., and of the keys D D D, 850., operating in combination, substantially as herein set forth.

In witness that the above is a true specification of our improvement in electromagnetic telegraph instruments we hereunto set our hands.

RUFUS KEN DBIGK. ALPHEUS W. ARKERSON.

Witnesses:

, JUSTIN A. JACOBS,

J os. WHITNEY. 

